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Thoughts 12/30/2005 December 31, 2005

Posted by Kelsey Martineau in Psychology, Sociology.
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Sometimes I love life. Sometimes I hate it. Recently it has been more the latter though. I don’t have the energy nor drive to type out why that is, but unfortunately it’s the truth. I guess we can’t always depend on life to be perfect though, can we? 2005 was definitely the hardest year of my life. I struggled with so much this year. Some of which was shared with others, and some that was only personal issues. Why is that? It seems like there are just some years of our life that seem tough, but some that go great. It’s funny. It is an odd thing to me though, that I am struggling with one of the same things this holiday season that I was last year at the exact same time. Most of my close friends that probably read this know exactly what I’m talking about, and if you don’t, well that comes back down to being to tired and strained to talk about it. It’s funny, I seem to be the one always advising people that everything will be ok, and everything will work out just like they need it to in their life, but I just find it so hard sometimes to listen to my own advice. It doesn’t really seem like most of my friends care to listen though. Most of them are so caught up in their own issues. By all means I’m not saying that their issues aren’t important, it’s just that sometimes I just feel like it’s hard to find someone that actually listens. Please spare me the sympathy though, because that isn’t the purpose of this message, and for God’s sake, NO this isn’t directed at one person. It’s probably just me. I’m sure it’s just my own issues that I have to work out; even if I had assistance from people, it wouldn’t help. I just need time, that’s all. Time to get over my issues. I’m so ready for the new year. But I hate people that are all about this “New Years Resolution” stuff. That just makes me mad. I’ll give you an example; I saw one of the most ridiculous things ever tonight on someone’s blog. They had made a statement, and it went like this: 2006 has to be a good year because 2 + 6 = 8 and the number 8 stands for fertility and long life, or some crap like that. Give me a break people. That is probably the dumbest thing I’ve heard in a long time. Things like that just piss me off, lol. Anyway, enough ranting. Time to go mope some more.

Thoughts 12/23/2005 December 23, 2005

Posted by Kelsey Martineau in Philosophy, Sociology.
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We approach yet another holiday season. Why is it that history seems to always repeat itself? I posted about that in my last post, I know, but it’s so true.

Come up to meet ya, tell you I’m sorry
You don’t know how lovely you are
I had to find you, tell you I need ya
And tell you I set you apart
Tell me your secrets, and nurse me your questions
Oh let’s go back to the start
Running in circles, coming in tails
Heads on a science apart

Nobody said it was easy
It’s such a shame for us to part
Nobody said it was easy
No one ever said it would be this hard
Oh take me back to the start

I was just guessing at numbers and figures
Pulling the puzzles apart.
Questions of science, science and progress
Don’t speak as loud as my heart.
Tell me you love me, and come back and haunt me,
Oh, when I rush to the start
Running in circles, chasing tails
coming back as we are.

Nobody said it was easy
It’s such a shame for us to part
Nobody said it was easy.
No one ever said it would be so hard
I’m going back to the start.

The Scientist, by Coldplay. The lyrics to this song are amazing. There’s no possible way I can express how much I wish I could go back to the start. Why can’t we? Slap me for asking that, because it’s a dumb question. Heck, what am I saying though? Life is dumb. I hate it. Why do things have to be so difficult? Why can’t we just all be honest? Why can’t things play out like they do in the movies? Or maybe not even like the movies, just let it play out like we would like it to, for one time. History repeats itself, again. Do you ever wonder why people come in and out of our lives if they seem to play absolutely no part at all? I do. I wonder why I’m caused so much grief and heartache if something doesn’t work out. I mean I pray to God, asking Him for everything to work out. Maybe I’m just selfish; Maybe I pray for the wrong reasons? I really don’t know, but sometimes I grow tired of this continuous loop I seem to be caught in. I don’t know what to do in my life sometimes. I don’t even know who to call friends anymore, who to call lovers, who to call acquaintances? See that’s why life is tough. That reason. We don’t know what other people are thinking. Why do we dance around the subject with issues? Why do we? That’s yet another eternal struggle that I deal with. It doesn’t seem fair. Can we not be honest? The world wants the best of both worlds in everything. I’m expected to be this honest, great, person, that tells how I feel, but yet I can’t get that in return. I guess time heals all wounds though.

Thoughts 12/15/2005 December 15, 2005

Posted by Kelsey Martineau in Philosophy, Psychology, Sociology.
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You know I just realized how much we really experience in life. I hear songs, that remind me of the past. It doesn’t seem like that far back sometimes, but usually it’s years back. It really is amazing to me. I look at all the people that have walked in and out of my life. Some were absolutely awesome, but they come in and out, and who knows where they go? Why is this? We aren’t meant to understand. Or maybe none of this stuff is as complicated as I make it? Maybe I over-dramatize things? I would like to say that isn’t the case, but maybe it is? I don’t know anymore. I just don’t know what to believe. I’ll tell you another funny thing about our past, and that’s that it repeats itself. You can say this isn’t the case, but it is. History definitely repeats itself. I’ve experienced it at least a dozen times, and it isn’t necessarily making mistakes over, but it’s just the irony of situations. Life is full of irony though, isn’t it?

Our society is changing. I noticed that tonight. I was in a restaurant, and looked around, and half the people had a wireless headset on for their cell phones. I was thinking, “dang I feel like I’m seeing a futuristic movie,” I don’t really remember that much as a kid, but I remember things beeing so much different than it is now. People seemed more real back then. Maybe it was just the fact that I was a kid, who knows? I just grow tired of society as a whole, and how we’re “supposed” to act, opposed to how we “want” to act, does that make sense? It’s like one of my friends said on a group blog that we post on. He talked about how great it would be to punch someone in the face and tell him how you really feel about them. There are definitely times that I would love to do that.

Thoughts 12/13/2005 (Epic) December 13, 2005

Posted by Kelsey Martineau in Philosophy, Politics, Psychology, Religion, Sociology.
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Our lives are nothing more than a glimpse, yet we place so much importance on them. We feel that everything we do, everyone we come in contact with, revolves around us. The human race as a whole is selfish, that has been summed up in so many previous posts, but that doesn’t mean that it isn’t worth mentioning. Sure, life is the longest thing that we will experience, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t flying by for most of us. You know why? Because most of us won’t make a huge difference. We aren’t going to affect the world how a lot of great minds have. But if you think about it, we all think everything revolves around us, as a human. We sometimes have goals in our life, and every single thing that we do is just another step in obtaining that goal. Who knows what it may be? For some it will be materials, for others, emotional highs, and others, simply success. We can’t say what the future will bring, because we don’t know. We have no idea, we can’t predict it. We can’t base it off our past. Sure determinism tells us that everything we do is based off our past, but who says that is right? Who says that any particular belief is right? Think about the concept of time. Time is the most absolute thing we have. We can’t live without it. Our whole lives are based around the clock. Meeting someone at this time, meeting a deadline for a project, not being on time for a date, a friend, a lover. I don’t believe that God sees in time though; not as we do anyway. I think God is time. The Bible even says that God is the alpha and omega. Ok so He’s seen the beginning, He’s seen the end. Well millions of philosophers around the world would claim that is a basis for the fact that we do not control our own lives, since God knows. This topic has been touched on a time or two in the past, but still goes unresolved in our minds. Just like I said, it’s an eternal struggle. It’s a never-ending battle going on in my mind about that. But if you think about it, why can’t we be in control? If God is not traveling through time, as we are, and he sees it as a whole, then why can’t we choose? Sure, a lot of people claim God is malevolent, because he chooses to let evil live, but then again, if he stopped evil, people would claim we don’t have enough free will, and God is a puppet master. People, no matter what happens, find an excuse to disprove the existence of God. No matter if it is for their benefit, or their satisfaction. The things that happen in our world, no matter if they are good or evil, black or white, clean or dirty, people will somehow use those to blame God. Or maybe they won’t even blame God as I know him. They may blame their God. The cows for the Hindus; Buddha for the Buddhists, Allah for the Islamic.

Situations arise in our life, when we just don’t know how to handle them. We fret, we get upset, we cry, we rejoice, we celebrate, we hurt others, when they happen. How many of them truly matter though? Have you ever considered that? What, that you are doing in your life right now, will matter in ten years? What will matter in five years? What will matter in one year? Tomorrow? One hour? Ten minutes? One minute? Thirty seconds? Very little. How do you make this difference though? What do you have to do in life to make a difference in the fate of the world? Or, do you believe in the Chaos theory, which states that every single thing changes so much that’s unbelievable. That’s one reason that our world is so overwhelming sometimes. There are so many religions, so many philosophical beliefs, and so many people that know for a fact that they are right about things. Sure, I’ll hear one thing one day and say, sure determinism sounds true. It sounds like the way to go. It feels right, but then again, the next day, you hear a new theory, or discover a new theory, that seems so right too, but contradicts determinism! Christianity feels right, but look at Buddhists, they feel right. Where do we draw the line? What’s it going to take? It’s hard to know what to believe these days, but I believe there is a God. How active is God? You know what, I would love to know that. I like to think that God is involved in every single thing that we do, but I don’t know if that is the case or not. Now don’t get me wrong. I believe that God has the ability to assist us in everything, but I don’t think He does. I think in some things, He wants us to figure it out for ourselves. To strengthen our faith, to teach us. I believe that pain is our greatest teacher.

Infinite striving to be the best is man’s duty, it is it’s own reward. Everything else is in God’s hands.

- Mahatma Gandhi

Thoughts 12/11/2005 December 11, 2005

Posted by Kelsey Martineau in Sociology.
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We are so funny to me. Humans that is. We do some of the oddest things. We worry when we shouldn’t; we fret over things that are minor, and won’t matter in ten years, or usually even five. I just find that odd. It’s confusing to me why other people do it, but then I look at my own life, and I am one of the worst victims of that. Sometimes issues bother me that shouldn’t. Take my future for an example; I know that everything is going to work out for me great. I know my life is going to turn out fine, but I worry about decisions, and although sometimes major decisions, I know they will turn out fine. But you know what, a lot of times, I dwell on them, when I shouldn’t. I think my view on a lot of things have changed since I was younger. I used to take the world as a generally friendly place, but now I see, from a different point of view, that generally, people are evil. That’s why things like Communism can’t work in our world. That’s a whole different discussion though. But back to the point, yes people are generally evil. We all know that.

Maybe it’s just that I grow tired of routine. Do you ever wonder why that is? I mean, if you think back to when you were a kid, everything seemed to go so much slower. Christmas seemed like they were years apart. Everything revolved around something so simple. Nothing was complicated. We had our little friends at school, and our little projects. No relationship difficulties whatsoever, we didn’t even know what they were at that point. The highlight of our day was recess, and I lived for Saturday morning cartoons. Garfield rocked man! And now, if you compare your life back then to now, our current ones are like enigmas. I guess the routine that we do day by day causes everything to go by so fast. I mean if you think about your trip to work today, or the last time you went, you don’t remember details on it at all. That’s because it’s routine, and we know it like the back of our hands. But see when we were kids, everything was fresh and new, it wasn’t familiar. The older I get, the faster time passes. Kind of sad to stop and think about.

Thoughts 12/08/2005 December 8, 2005

Posted by Kelsey Martineau in Psychology.
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I sometimes wish our lives were as easy as others thought they were. Or I guess I should say as others perceive them to be. I don’t understand why we can’t all have those storybook endings, or even storybook lives? Have you ever thought about it? Is life difficult because it’s life, or is it more difficult to some than others? I honestly just don’t know. I’d like to think that life will get easier as I grow older, but things just seem to get more complicated, day by day. More things come up, more issues arrive. Just when you think you’ve pulled ahead in life, it throws a curve-ball at you. What can ease that pain? What can make things easier?

Has materialism overcome our world so much that no one cares about anything other than the needs of their own? Sometimes I think so. In fact, I believe that’s it. I believe the world has become so engrossed with their own needs and desires, we’ve forgotten about everyone else. Perhaps everyone has forgot how to give assistance, or to consider others feelings in the world. It’s very hard to find nice people these days. People that will actually listen to you. It seems like everyone expects you to do so much for them, but then when it comes down to them helping you, they are no where to be found. I’ve been there for so many people, I’ve listened; I’ve heard their problems, but then I sometimes feel like no one cares to hear mine. No one is considerate enough to take the time to listen, and even if they do, it doesn’t seem like they even care. I don’t know, I almost feel like anything that anyone does, is just a selfish desire in their own heart, to obtain what they need, or want. Who knows. Our world has just been corrupted by so much.

I’m almost just ready for it to be over. Maybe it’s just that life was a lot easier as a child. Take me back to the start.

Thoughts 12/07/2005 December 7, 2005

Posted by Kelsey Martineau in Philosophy, Sociology.
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I often wonder about people. Why they do as they do; why the act as they act. If you notice sometimes, when you see someone you know, but maybe you don’t know them that well, but well enough to speak, sometimes they will kind of duck their heads, hoping that you won’t see them. I mean come on; we’re all guilty of this. Sometimes in our minds too, we think, “I hope he doesn’t see me, ok they are half way passed me and still haven’t said anything…” and the other person will speak, and we will respond with, “Hey! How’s it going, it’s been such a long time since I’ve seen you,” Is that not human nature? Every single person reading this has done that at one point or another. I wonder why though? I mean, it’s not necessarily that we dislike that person, (well sometimes we do) but there’s just something about it. That kind of brings up the topic of fakeness in individuals. I’ve heard all these astrological signs that claim that certain people born under this particular sign, “Adapt their personality to whoever they are around,” What in the world? How does that work? A better question, why would you want to do that. Now don’t get me wrong, I understand the concept of toning down certain subjects around people, but is it really necessary to change who we are around certain people? Shouldn’t they accept us for who we are, instead of expecting us to change for them? That’s just confusing to me. I have so many unanswered questions about the Human race, it isn’t even funny.

Do we need philosophy? I can’t tell you how many times my mind has been plagued with the question, “Are we in control of our own actions,” Yes you are correct, I have posted on this topic before, but it’s an eternal struggle for me. Now that statement can be misread. Of course I’m choosing to type this. Of course I choose what I do. But from a Christian point of view, think of this: God knows what we will do. He knows our actions. He is omnipotent. He can do whatever pleases Him. He knows the future, He knows the past, and he knows the present. For God, there is no time. A friend once told me this, “God looks at our lives like this. Imagine taking a clear straw, and holding it between your two index fingers. He sees the beginning, He sees the end. But he watches as we make choices.” Ok, so that tells me that we make the choices. But if God knew the choices, are we really choosing? I guess we are, if you really think about it. I kind of like what the oracle said in The Matrix Reloaded:

The Oracle: Candy?
Neo: Do you already know if I’m going to take it?
The Oracle: Wouldn’t be much of an Oracle if I didn’t.
Neo: But if you already know, how can I make a choice?
The Oracle: Because you didn’t come here to make the choice, you’ve already made it. You’re here to try to understand why you made it. I thought you’d have figured that out by now.

That to me is a really good point. She isn’t really saying there that everything is fate, you have to read carefully. “You’ve already made it [the choice]” That’s a really good point. It sounds to me like she’s saying that time almost has no meaning. She sees the end, but Neo is still making the decision. That movie makes some excellent points if you think about it.

Thoughts 12/03/2005 December 3, 2005

Posted by Kelsey Martineau in Philosophy, Religion.
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Do you ever question your actions? Not only your present, but your past? Don’t mistake this with regret. I don’t regret what I’ve done, but in hindsight, I have been analyzing an ordeal which I went through over the summer, and I wonder if everything played out how it was “supposed” to? Because really, we don’t know. You can always throw it off on fate, and say that everything is “meant” to happen, but not everyone believes that. I don’t even know if I believe that anymore. I just don’t know what to think. I guess when it boils down to it, I feel torn up in my heart, because I feel like I lost a couple of friends. I don’t know why it played out how it did, and sometimes I cry just thinking back on it. You know, we don’t know what the right path for our life is. You know I’ve questioned a lot lately. I’ve questioned my religion, facts about Christianity, evolution vs. creationism. I don’t necessarily mean I’ve been doubting it, but it’s human nature to question. There is a particular even in my life that makes me a believer in Christianity, and I will share:

I was at this conference, probably in 1999 or 2000, it was a youth conference. and all my friends were up on stage playing in the band at this thing, there were 400 to 500 people there – and I felt like I was worthless and nothing “special” because I wasn’t up there too, and they were all up there playing. Well I remember a guy preached, named J.D. Glass, and I remember he had an alter call. Well I didn’t go, but I was about three or four rows from the front. Well he was praying for people at the front of the church, and then all of a sudden, he looked at me, and singled me out, and then came over to me, and I’ll never forget what he said. He said “Kelsey you are special, don’t forget that. God has a plan for you, he’s calling you to Him, don’t forget that, you are special, you are special” and he didn’t even know me, I wasn’t up there to get prayed for or anything, he just picked me out of the crowd.

Since that day I’ve always remembered there is a God. That to me has always been a very inspiring story, and almost every time I have doubt in my life, I think of that, and it’s reassured. You know, Philosophy will tell us things like that are coincidence, or happenstance, but give me a break. If Philosophy is all about logical thinking, then you would assume the individuals involved in it would be logical enough to know that the odds of that are extremely slim.

My Physical Science teacher said something aloud in class the other night that makes more sense than any other explanation I’ve ever heard about God. He raised his hand at eye level, and claimed, “God is up here, and we are down here,” and he lowered his other hand down to his waist. Then he said, “When we start trying to bring God down to our level, and try to understand it, is when we start having issues, with doubt, or whatever it may be,” That’s a really simple statement, but it’s so true if you think about it. Do I have hard evidence that there is a God? No I don’t; I can’t tell you for a fact that there is a Heaven or there is a Hell. Death could be nothing more than endless oblivion, but you know what, that’s where faith comes in. People claim all sorts of things about the Bible, how it’s inaccurate, etc… Well that may be, that’s another thing I just don’t know, but I believe this: It’s God breath. I believe, a God powerful enough to create the universe (however he may have done it, the ‘Big Bang’, Creation, etc…) is powerful enough to keep facts straight in a book, written by entities that He originally created.